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Topic Review (Newest First)

09-19-2013 03:21 PM

claugerbaum

Re: Urbanna for marina location

James, it has been awhile since your post and appears you are sailing out of Urbana. I hope you are enjoying it as much as we have throughout the years. My partner and I have an Irwin 39 "Mystic" that is in the Eastern Branch of the Corrotoman. My wife and I are leaving this Saturday for a week on the bay and waiting for the wind forecast to decide on going north or south.
Just looking over the post and thought I would drop you a note. Good sailing and maybe we will see you at the "Festival" in November.

I have been very pleased with Urbanna. The river is beautiful and allows for sailing in several directions from Urbanna. The smaller waves are good for my family sailing. The only downside is its distance from the Bay - 15 n.m. - but for my daysailing with occasional long cruises it is perfect.

James,
We sailed out of Regent Point (East side of the bridge - Rt 3) on the Rappahannock River prior to going to Kinsale. From Regent Point, it took about an 1 hr 15 m or so to sail from our slip to the bay and I think Urbanna is about twice as far. We found that the water averages around 30' within the River and never came close to going aground until we got closer to the bay. There are some good creeks and anchoring on the Rappahannock and nice places to sail and visit like Irvington.
Urbanna's town has very little attractions except for their Oyster Fest each year (I believe they still have that). We tried to get a cup of coffee there one Saturday morning as we were passing through and nothing was open. We did considered going there at one time, slips are very inexpensive and you can pick one up for the year for about $2k (many slips owned by the Urbanna Association) and the drive from Richmond is much less than most of the bay marinas, which is nice when you have children.
We have a friend that sails out of the Urbanna area on his 30' sailboat from a private dock slip and loves it, but he has no interest in going out into the bay.

We moved from Regent Point (Rappahannock) to Kinsale (Potomac) last year and now I am considering going back before we renew our lease in April. We are looking in Deltaville which we visited many times by sailboat and car, and took a ASA Charter & Offshore sailing courses there. Deltaville is a sailboat town with many riggers, maint. shops and boat yards, and a good sail loft, Ullman / Latell Sails. I was always able to get cable swaged, obtain engine parts for my Yanmar or a shim for my prop. Urbanna has a boatyard but I have not heard anything good or bad about them.

02-12-2013 07:59 PM

kd3pc

Re: Urbanna for marina location

Quote:

Originally Posted by PalmettoSailor

You talking Jackson Creek or Broad Creek? Broad creek was narrow but a prefectly straight shot. It required absolute attention for a few minutes but I never found it particularly problematic (well after running aground the very first time I ever took a sailboat out on my own).

Jackson creek on the other hand is as crooked as a Congressman and requires driving up almost on the beach for one turn.

Broad Creek, used to keep my boat at the old Deltaville Yachts dock, and I too ran aground exiting (overshot the channel) first time out. In 1999 it was barely wide enough for two 30's to pass side to side, let alone a big boat, or a powerboat slewing past at half throttle. My 6' would bounce almost every time, even in mid channel.

Jackson is hairier, but I guess since I was always really paying attention, to all the turns, I never drug bottom there.

Experiences there, though made me a better sailor getting in and out, watching the tides and even waiting on some jerk to barrel down the middle.

Best of luck, JW where ever you end up.

02-12-2013 04:36 PM

jimgo

Re: Urbanna for marina location

I just drove through that area to look at a boat in Deltaville. The boat had been in Urbana before she was moved to D'ville by the broker. As I looked at the map, and considered the drive time down some quiet roads, I wondered why anyone would intentionally choose to keep their sailboat in Urbana. A power boat? That's another story - short shot out to the bay. But in a sailboat, that's an hour or more out to the bay, and along a fairly narrow waterway if the winds aren't favorable. Now, I'm "thrifty", so maybe the cost of marinas in Urbana were significantly less expensive enough to offset the inconvenience, but since I sail with kids most of the time, I want easy, quick access to the main body of water, even if it means an extra 15-20 minutes in the car.

I note that this is an older thread. Have you made it down that way to scout things out?

02-11-2013 10:32 PM

Sea Dawg

Re: Urbanna for marina location

Deltaville or Fishing Bay just to the south. I delivered a boat from Urbanna to Smithfield VA and it took about 3 hrs to get to Stingray Point. Pretty much blew our schedule which was to get to Mobjack Bay. Ended up at Fishing Bay which was a nice stop. Don't think you'd get the most of your boat up at Urbanna. Rappahannock is a beautiful river, with plenty navigable water but for us it was against incoming tide and you'll face that half the time. Again, Rappahannock is a great river but you should find closer to the mouth. Perhaps at Whitestone (I think it's Carter's Creek). Good luck.

02-11-2013 09:48 PM

PalmettoSailor

Re: Urbanna for marina location

Quote:

Originally Posted by kd3pc

that dag gone channel in and out of Deltaville is such a pain, and like Caleb mentions, you really have to watch the depths. Urbanna has a lot of touristy things to do, and several festivals a year. There is limited slippage in Urbanna proper, but those are pretty decent weather holes for the most part. The town dock and area can get crowded quickly.

Couple of hours to the bay, and not near as wide as the Potomac so if you get to the bay and it looks ominous, you are pretty much compelled to head back up the river instead of across. Short sails, but that can hone your tacking skills. I don't recall much current one way or the other. You will get some wind tide every now and then.

The York may be a better choice, time wise from Richmond, with similar sailing and facilities to the Rappahanock, Deltaville excluded.

Best of luck

You talking Jackson Creek or Broad Creek? Broad creek was narrow but a prefectly straight shot. It required absolute attention for a few minutes but I never found it particularly problematic (well after running aground the very first time I ever took a sailboat out on my own).

Jackson creek on the other hand is as crooked as a Congressman and requires driving up almost on the beach for one turn.

02-11-2013 02:39 PM

kd3pc

Re: Urbanna for marina location

that dag gone channel in and out of Deltaville is such a pain, and like Caleb mentions, you really have to watch the depths. Urbanna has a lot of touristy things to do, and several festivals a year. There is limited slippage in Urbanna proper, but those are pretty decent weather holes for the most part. The town dock and area can get crowded quickly.

Couple of hours to the bay, and not near as wide as the Potomac so if you get to the bay and it looks ominous, you are pretty much compelled to head back up the river instead of across. Short sails, but that can hone your tacking skills. I don't recall much current one way or the other. You will get some wind tide every now and then.

The York may be a better choice, time wise from Richmond, with similar sailing and facilities to the Rappahanock, Deltaville excluded.

Best of luck

02-11-2013 02:16 PM

PalmettoSailor

Re: Urbanna for marina location

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dog8It

Urbanna is definitely a good place to keep the boat. However, Deltaville gives you more sailing options: up the river towards Urbanna, mouth of Piankatank, the Bay. Plus you will have a good choice of reasonably priced marinas.

I stayed in Urbanna for a few days in September and had a great time. Whether it would suit you for a basing your boat there would depend a great deal on how you use your boat.

Urbanna is a long ways from the Chesapeake, but there is plenty of sailable water right outside the entrance to the town. The East and West Branches of the Corratoman would be an easy sail as would the anchorages in Carter's Creek, so there are some quick overnight trips available without ever entering the Bay. That said, it would be a looonnng haul to say Onancock and even places like the Great Wicomico or Fishing Bay would be a pretty good day sail away.

All in all though, I think I'd agree with Dog8It that Deltaville would be a better base of operations. I think I'd go further and say that the Broad Creek entrance offers the most possiblities allowing visits to the previously mentioned anchorages (but now adding Urbanna as a place to visit) without having to enter the bay, or if the weather was agreeable any of the many creeks between Windmill and Smith Points or going around Stingray point into the Piankatank. You can still do those trips easily from the Piankatank side, but it would require heading out on the bay to get to the shelter of the Rapp. which might limit you to a daysail or anchoring out in Fishing Bay/Godfrey Bay on a few occasions a year.

When we sailed from Deltaville, I always liked that I had fairly sheltered places I could sail from Broad Creek, even when it was blowing stink out on the Bay.

Edited to add, we had some dockmates that went to Tides Inn almost every time they took their boat out, because their sailing buddies were based out of Urbanna and Carter Creek was the only place they could manage to meet up. The friends moved their boat to Deltaville taking our old slip so now they can choose other destinations.

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